Glorious morning at Hanmer....and there are 2 choices to run up the hills in the back of town to access either/ or the classic "Molesworth" or the equally classic, but more technical and rough "Rainbow" roads (which was still closed at the time).
North-west out of Hanmer is Jacks Pass, basically just a good, 1.5lane gravel road, well maintained, 2wd easy, no water crossings.
North-east out of Hanmer is Jollies Pass, a strict dual-track, steep-ish, rocky and more technical/ slow variant with a couple of creek crossings.
High-clearance 2wd after the grader's been through....or 4wd, washed-out, bermed, bath-tubbed and half-way overgrown with lots of water runnels and waterholes....like this time.
I'd never seen it as rough as that.
Tassie Dave thought so too.
Went through the waterhole ok.... then skewered offline into the broom-bushes before tipping over. Needed 3 sets of muscle to drag the jammed-in DR out of the tough scrub.
Splat #1 for the day, barely 20mins in and the breakfast-bagel still wedged down the gullet.
Just a few k's further, Jollies Pass ends on the Molesworth Rd.
Turn left and find the turnoff down Jacks Pass back into Hanmer in ~7 or 8 k's .
Continue past Jacks Pass.... and run north the 90km up the Rainbow Rd.
....
or
....
turn right here for the Molesworth Rd., 170km to the coastal SH1 Highway near Blenheim.
We'll take that one, this time.
Time to cut loose the crew for everyone to do their own thing and run their own pace.
Can't really get lost here....
Getting the hang of this deep gravel shyte. Gero on the gas....a swollen Clarence River on the right.
Bridge across the Clarence near the Molesworth Homestead.....70k's down, 100k's to go....splat#2 for the day down in the grassy meadows when I try to get off a wobbly parked bike and the boot catches the seat.
On my arse like a flipped-over bug... with the bike coming after me to finish the job.
....and Tassie-Dave is missing, fark!@
What'd I say?? Can't get lost here?
Should've bloody remembered, aye?....good, old Dave can get lost in his own pants-pocket!

Beats me, how he ever found his way out of the womb!@!
Never paid attention in the past...but here the Clarence Rivers veers towards the coast and a new set of ridges and valleys.
And the road flips across a shallow saddle into the neighboring valley, following the next river.
Sometimes it's a little relief to see other folks on/ along that road...it can get pretty lonely out there despite the well-defined road and the occasional signs of human existence.
